Elements of Prayer

Introduction

Alexander Graham Bell was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. On march 3 1847. He was homeschooled and was a problem solver from an early age. During the time of Bell’s life communication traveled through wires and the telegraph had to be decoded before the information could be understood. In 1871, Bell worked on a device that allowed multiple messages to be transmitted over a single wire at the same time. A couple years later, with the help of Thomas Watson, developed a simple receiver that could trurn electricity into sound. On March 7th 1876 Bell patented his telephone and made the first telephone call a few days later to Watson, uttering the phrase “Mr Whatson , come here. I want you.” Now communication is no longer traveling through wires but is wirelessly. We can FaceTime with each other, participate on social media, and have conversations using symbols instead of words. It seems that we continue to progress to newer technology In which we can talk to others more continently. The progression of communication has traveled through different fassits, from smoke signals, to Our current cellphones, each instance reminds us of who we are as people. We have been created in the image of God and because of that we are capable of relationships.

God has created us in his image, and that image is shown in our ability to have relationships, mainly a relationship with him. However because of our sin our relationship with God has been marred. For us to be in a relationship with God sin must be taken care of. Before for one to take care of sin they would have to go to the temple and provide sacrifices. This is the time that we are in Mark. People are heading up toward Jeruselem for the Passover celebration. The Passover is celebrated in remeberance Of God delivering his people from the plague while they were in Egypt.

Remind the current situation.

Read Mark 11:22-25

Jesus in cleansing the temple and pronouncing judgement of it as we saw in the object lesson from the fig tree, is teaching his disciple that things are changing. Worship is not going to be done in the temple. The temple was full of robber and was not considered a house of prayer anymore. There will be a new place for prayer, by a new sacrifice that is coming through the son of God. In Jesus this is a new era, will not have a temple to go to for prayer. In this section that we are in Jesus is showing his disciple what prayer looks like for them after the end of this week.

Just as for us, prayer is our means of communication to the only one who is in control. Prayer is something essential to our existence. To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing!” says one writer

Main Point: Prayer is an act of worship that is done through faith with a forgiving heart to a forgiving Savior.

Prayer is an act of worship.

For an understanding of this we must back tract some to Jesus cleansing the temple. Jesus says that the temple shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations… this comes from

Isaiah 56:6–9 (ESV): And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord,

to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord,

and to be his servants,

everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,

and holds fast my covenant—

7  these I will bring to my holy mountain,

and make them joyful in my house of prayer;

their burnt offerings and their sacrifices

will be accepted on my altar;

for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.”

8  The Lord God,

who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares,

“I will gather yet others to him

besides those already gathered.”

Israel’s Irresponsible Leaders

(ESV): And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant— these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, “I will gather yet others to him besides those already gathered.” Israel’s Irresponsible Leaders

The new house of prayer will be brought about because of Jesus. Through him we can can now commune with God, no matter where we are. We dont have to Go to a temple to pray, or have someone to pray for us. The relationship between us and God is fixed.

and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant— these I will bring to my holy mountain,

everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,

Our worship is bathed in prayer because prayer is an act of worship. Worship means to attribute worth to something. If you think to the Lords Prayer Our father who art in Heaven, Hallowed be thy name… Holy be your name. Its providing worth to God.

and holds fast my covenant—

Part of this is recognising that it is only God who is in control of our circumstances. He alone is the creator of everything. He alone orchrastates His will among all creation. By humbling ourselves we can come to him, in prayer, worshipping.

What better way to worship God than to give to him our needs. To ask him to be in our lives. For him to be the one where we obtain wisdom from. For him to be the one to provide for us knowledge, for him to be the one to elighten our hearts, for him to be the one that gives us hope, for him to be the one to guide us. God alone is the one who is worthy of all praise and honor, He is the one in which we pray to, and worship him through prayer.

We should not just pray when something goes wrong, or we are in need, but we should pray in worhsip and praise to our creator.

Faith in Prayer

7  these I will bring to my holy mountain,

Jesus says have faith in God. truly, i say to you whoever says to thismountain be taken up and thrown into the sea and des not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will come to pass it will be done for him. There fore i ttell you whatever yhou ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

As hebrews puts it faith is the assurance of things hoped for the conviction of things not seen.

We are to have faith in God that when we pray he will answer. God’s help through life is found in and through prayer. And we must have faith that God will answer. Faith doesnt give God power to accomplish our prayer, or to put it this way our prayers are not answered because of our amount of faith, God answers our prayers because we have faith.

He is willing to move mountains because of our prayers in faith.

Prayer conforms our will toward Gods. When we pray for God’s will to be done, we are conforming ourselves to God’s will, and if we ask and ask and ask and ask for something that is contained in God’s will then it will be granted to us.

Prayer is like oxygen for the Christian, is sustaining. It helps strengthan our faith, making us more like Jesus through bringing to him our needs.

Maybe you are having trouble praying, maybe you dont pray at all. I urge you to go to God daily, communue with him where you are, praise him for who he is, talk to him about your struggles, hurts and sins. He listens and he is active. When he answers prayers praise him even more.

Talk to God, pray through scripture, pray through the psalms.

Abraham met God and god offered to hear his prayer to spare the town where his nephew lived. Moses met God at the burning bush and not long after he successfully interceded for israel. in the fourty days following Jesus’s ressurection and ascension the disciples began to pray differntly. They stopped praying for self-preservation and more for Gospel faithfulness and boldness. God rewards the prayers of novices, which encourages consistent prayer in the lives of his people. Onwuchekwa.

Remember ACTS

Adoration- Remember who you are praying to. You are praying to God, talking to the creator of all things, the all powerful, all knowing, holy and righteous. Remeber his Character and what he has done for you in Christ. Remeber that it only through Jesus that you are able to approach him. Without the sacrifice of Jesus, you couldnot apprach him. Go to him humbly.

Confession- Pondering the holiness of God, oursinfulness is illuminated. This should bring us to confession. DOnt minimize your sin in your life, confess your sin. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. in confession we also are able to forgive...

and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices

Pray with a Forgiving heart

their burnt offerings and their sacrifices

Forgivness is important part to prayer.

and whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. V25

We must forgive others as we have been forgivenin

will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”

We are to ask for forgivness for our sins.

for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.”

2. we forgive because we have been fogiven for much!

8  The Lord God,

Gospel

c. Thanksgiving- Gratitude about what God accomplishes in this sinful world leads us to thanksgiving. He is able to do marvoulse things despite your fallen nature. He has provided for you an inheritance in Jesus that is undiefiled imperishable and unfaiding. Be grateful. dont be blinded to God’s goodness that he has shown. Rejoice in what he has done and is doing.

who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares,

d. Supplication- Pray for the things around you. sickness, disease, things that are going on in life that are distractions. dont doupt God’s ability have faith in him. Sometimes God does answer with no so that you can be strngthed in him, and he uses it to conform you to him more. Sometimes God answers yes, use this as a time to strenghten your faith.

“I will gather yet others to him

besides those already gathered.”

Israel’s Irresponsible Leaders